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REDjet expression of interest in operating out of Melville Hall Airport

Having spent to the tune of $116 M for realizing same‐day connection capability and ICAO compliance at Melville Hall Airport every civic‐minded Dominican earnestly looks forward to the bountiful rewards of this essential development and the advancement of our air access to the next level.

It is with much delight therefore that the disclosure of the interest expressed by the USA agent for REDjet, Emerald Express Charters, Inc of Naples, Florida is made.

On June 7, 2011 Mr. Jimmy Maldonado, President of Emerald Express Charters, Inc and Emerald Express Cargo emailed the Melville Hall Airport authority to request performance and physical details of the runway.

According to Mr. Maldonado the requested information is for analyzing the possibility of starting a charter service between Florida and the Melville Hall Airport.

The proposed airplane intended to use for that service is the McDonnell Douglas MD‐82 jet aircraft capable of carrying 167 passengers.

The length of that aircraft is 147 ft – 8 in (45 m) with a wingspan of 107 ft – 8 in (32.8m) and the Maximum Take‐off Weight (MTOW) is 149, 500 lbs. The required runway length for the MD‐82 jet aircraft at MTOW condition is 5,000 ft (1,500 m) for dry surface runway and 5,700 ft (1,700 m) for wet runway.

The McDonnell Douglas MD‐82 Jet Aircraft

And based upon the assessment and review of Emerald Express Charters, Inc supported by information they received from Jeppesen (Jeppesen is the foremost global aviation authority on flight charts and airport rating) the Company has confirmed that there “won’t be a problem to land and takeoff at the maximum payload if the Takeoff Distance Available (TODA) is actually 8,353 ft”.

Indeed the TODA at the Melville Hall Airport on Runway 09 (the only permitted takeoff runway at Melville Hall Airport) is 8,353 ft as published in the Eastern Caribbean Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP) of the Trinidad and Tobago
Civil Aviation Authority. Please see the main navigational and runway physical characteristics at the end of the article on the copy of the Aerodrome Chart – ICAO for Melville Hall Airport for further information.

In addition to the runway length prerequisites, the asphaltic concrete pavement also possesses the desired strength requirement to safely accommodate the MTOW of 149, 500 lb since as a matter of fact the Pavement Classification Number (PCN) for Melville Hall Airport runway, taxiway and apron is 71/F/A/X/T which means that pavement can safely support a MTOW of up to 265,000 lbs. That is to say the runway, taxiway and apron at Melville Hall Airport can carry more than 44% of the fully laden MD‐82 jet aircraft which REDjet intends using.

REDjet is the Caribbean’s original Low Fares Airline (LFA) which is currently introducing a run of low fare routes across the Caribbean. The airline is promising greater reliability, non‐stop flights and the lowest airfares. REDjet is seeking to put
forward the fastest, most convenient and most affordable way to travel in the Caribbean.

REDjet’s maiden airports of operation are Bridgetown (Barbados), Port of Spain (Trinidad), Georgetown (Guyana) and Kingston (Jamaica). Their fares will be available through REDjet’s website, call centre and other designated retail locations.

According to the company’s release, passengers will also be able to book their low fare online or via our call centre and pay at Paymaster locations.

The airline is privately owned and incorporated in St. Lucia. Its business offices are situated in Grantley International Airport in Barbados where it is expected to open its first aircraft base with its initial two aircrafts.

The Company has two (2) McDonnell Douglas MD‐82MD‐82 jet aircraft which are fitted with 149 seats and powered by two JT8D – 217A engines. The airline has also announced that REDjet “intends to open bases across the region as it develops routes
to exciting destinations across the Caribbean, Latin America and to the US”.

The Dominican Authority therefore looks forward with great interest and anticipation to being included among the exciting destinations across the Caribbean, Latin America and the USA serviced by REDjet.

Map of Melville Hall Airport

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Please do us all the fav don’t bother boarding the damn plane. You obviously anti anything positive. Nothing please the red ass baboons here claiming to be Dominicans. You and all the others that are against it DON’T BOARD IT STAY WITH LIAT. Stay simpleminded backwards and ignorant. You are one of the other baboons that claimed no flights would land here at night.. I’ve taken flights that landed in Dominica at minutes to 8.. I have taken liat flight from 7:30-8pm so who is the troll? you just a sad baboon. Do us the fav and step off u jack horse.

I understand the purpose of your disclaimer. However, there should be some kind of editing, and or even some downrigt deleting of some of these negative and ignoramous commrnts that some off the people are placing on your website, which eventually makes their way to the World Wide Web.
Once it get to WWW, all the Judges, and Critiques can view them. I am under the understanding that people with academic interlect who comes across the these unintelegent comments are generalizing to all Dominicans as bunch of uninformed people. I would like to send an academic challenge to the owners of these nonprogressive or even regressive mentalities to revist what they have writen read and approach differently.

OK, guys. All of a sudden DNO is full of well informed aeronautical ‘experts’.

Now, come clean. What is it that Emerald are doing that is so bad. I don’t dispute the claims without evidence, only that with so many of you quite obviously smoke screening … well you must have your reasons.

Dominica has nothing … no tourists, no investment and no employment. We need something … anything.

Please have a good answer.

Yes I do see that Redjet are being bandied by the minister without any real Redjet reference … but if a charter company of another name comes … what is the bad side?

My advise to the government is to expand the runway, by way of bulding a tunnel and pushing the sea back. Involve the Dutch/Netherlands, Japanese or the Chinese to have it done. These people have the expertise getting things of that nature done. If this is feasible, why can’t we go that way? It might be less costly than having to construct a new airport all together. I hope the government chose the cheapest way possible of getting it done.
Thanks

SERIOUS TING!!! I FED UP WITH ALL THE BACKWARD BULL CRAP. THERE IS NO PLEASING YOU PEOPLE NOTHING CAN WIN OVER THE DAY FOR ALL DOMINICANS TO BE HAPPY. SOME OF YOU GUYS ARE RETARDED DOTISH JACK HORSES WHO JUST LOOK TO THUMBS DOWN AND BASH ANYTHING WITH PRODUCTIVITY! AMERIJET AND CHARTERED AIRCRAFTS BIGGER THAN REDJET LANDED IN DOM MANY TIMES B4 SO WHAT IS THE PROBLEM???????? WHEN WAS THE LAST MJOR ACCIDENT AT MELVIL? IF YOU DONT WANT TO FLY OUT OR IN TAKE A DAMN WATER TAXI TO GWADA OR LUCIA AND FLY OUT FROM THERE.. YOU PEOPLE MAKE ME SICK WITH ALL THESE FACTS AND BULL CRAP YOU DONT KNOW SHIT!!!!! YOU ARE ALL THE SAME STUPID IGNORANT JACK HORSES THAT SAY THE STADIUM WOULD NEVER BUILD AND IT WOULD NEVER BE USED.. GO GET A LIFE PLEASE IDEYAAAAAATS!!!!!!

So long I tell allu the run way big enough. Amerjet comes here every Tuesday Fully loaded and Amerijet is bigger than this jet. So no complains. This is a good look. direct flights to and from FL..From FL to the rest of the state. This a boss move. Amerijet flys the same rout every Tuesdays with no problem. The landing is pure visual. We welcome REDjet!

IM TROLLING?????????????????? HOW THE HECK CAN A BIGGER JET LAND SAFELY AND A SMALLER ONE CANT? SHUT THE HELL UP YOU DUMB IGNORANT BABOON! YOU AND ALL THE OTHERS TROLLING IN HERE ACTING LIKE YOUALL KNOW EVERYTHING SHUT UP FOR ONCE YOU IDIOT!!!

Like or Dislike: 05DomAugust 15, 2011

These are old air craft as well… Go to you tube to see the jet landing at Melville Hall, looks a bit knarly to me I’ll stick to the prop job until yall realise that additional length and width would be a plus.
Youtube Amerijet landing NUTS!!! whole lot of reverse thrust and brakeshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ao5r5zxAG6Y&feature=related

Just when you thought air travel couldn’t get any worse, it did: more confusion, exploitation, manipulation and the occasional molestation. But wait! What’s that in the sky? A bird? A plane? Well, it is a plane: an old American Airlines plane painted “RED.” REDjet is finally here to save us from the nightmarish experience flying has become. Or is it? First there were the TSA personnel who pushed their fingers in toddlers’ pants. Then a woman, in the midst of her pat-down, “grabbed and twisted” a security agent’s breast. Next, a 95-year-old cancer patient had her “wet and firm” adult diaper forcibly removed. Security is only the beginning of passenger abuse. Up until last week, US airlines were pocketing an extra US$28 million daily thanks to a US Congress deadlock. Aviation taxes were not being charged to passengers, so airlines increased their fares by the tax amount, pocketing the difference.
In fact, airlines worldwide profited US$21 billion last year from the “ancillary fees” they charge. These fees not only put a heavy strain on our pockets, but also make the booking process hellishly complex. Take Ireland’s Ryanair, the budget airline Europeans love to hate. One-fifth of its revenue comes from ancillary fees. These include euro 40 for printing a boarding pass at the airport, despite a euro 6 check-in fee per person, per flight, when booking online. In-flight beverages can cost ten times the retail price, and the seats don’t even recline. Other Ryanair proposals: adding six more seats per aircraft by eliminating two of the toilets; making passengers pay to use the toilets; and redesigning aircraft to accommodate “standing passengers.”

The cost of “low-cost”
Many of us haven’t heard of Ryanair, but it is apt to mention. REDjet’s CEO Ian Burns “dreams of creating a Caribbean version of Europe’s cut-rate Ryanair,” says a recent newspaper report. He means it, of course, in the low-cost aspect. That’s why he calls REDjet the “consumer champion,” reiterating the potential for a US$9.99 fare, thus “reducing the cost of travelling in the region by up to 60 per cent.” And he firmly believes in this business model. In a YouTube video interview with Errol Fabian, Burns says his is, in fact, the “most sustainable, profitable airline model in the world…” They’re a boastful bunch. But Trinis like a good deal. The Burns are talking our language. But when you take a closer look you might find less English and more Greek.
As a “low-cost” (read: budget/no frills) airline, CEO Burns calls his an “opt-in policy, which means you pay for what you get.” Looking into a return trip to Barbados in December, I found a base fare of US$55 each way, a far cry from US$9.99. Then there are the airport security charge, sales tax, passenger use charge, concourse fee, airport terminal charge…For whatever reason, the passenger service charges alone total US$73.94: more than a flight itself. These are things over which REDjet has no control. But then the airline delivers its surprise. Hidden fees? A “VIP pass” supposedly lets you sit where you want—for an extra US$10. In big, red, all-capital letters, you read that you get to carry one handbag and laptop onboard for “free.” Jump for joy.
What REDjet calls “extras” includes luggage, even carry-on luggage. Luggage fees are determined by size and weight, up to US$25 each. But that’s the online price. While REDjet allows two checked pieces, you can only pay online for one piece. For the other piece, you must pay for it at the airport, which carries pricing up to three times more than the Web site. So travelling with two large suitcases could potentially cost you US$120. And then, for your convenience and laziness, REDjet will send a text message reservation confirmation to your phone—for an extra US$1. The only convenience, in fact, is being able to book online. Online booking costs the airline almost nothing. But it does cost the passenger: US$5 per passenger, per flight. And yet nowhere in the fee breakdown is this explicitly mentioned.
So airfare, taxes, REDjet’s hidden fees, text message, priority boarding (which equates to a seat assignment), one carry-on and one suitcase totals around US$285. At the end of this exhausting, unfamiliar booking process, REDjet isn’t such a steal of a deal. The “opt-in” ancillary costs run into the ridiculous. It is something to which West Indians are not accustomed, but which today’s more complex world necessitates: a keener eye, a more guarded pocket and a wearier disposition. Not everything that glitters is gold. And given that Ryanair is apparently REDjet’s inspiration, the future looks anything but golden for passengers. If it’s one thing REDjet has given us, it’s alternatives. So before you give in to the low-cost allure, explore your options. Otherwise, you may only be seeing red. To wit: the total for the same flight on Caribbean Airlines was US$140 cheaper, half REDjet’s cost.

I would really hope that this goes further, and one day (soon from now) RedJet would start operating in Dominica. And to all those who just seat and blog a bunch of shit, you guys aren’t doing any good to your fellow Dominicans nor yourselves and should maybe just take a bullet in the head. Rome Was not Built in a Day, so hold y’all horses and let Dominica “upgrade” one step at a time!!! I hate it when i see all these negative comments

And as for a MD-82 landing in Dominica, its not impossible.I’ve seen Boeing 737 land in Dominica, yes NOLINOR B737 and departed to San Juan. Stop being so ignorant and arrogant at the same time and let things form in place.

What about that boeing that had to do an emergency landing in Dom some years ago? it came from FL did an emergency landing in Dom cause the plane had some prob.. when the prob was fixed it took off same runway. Fully loaded with passengers.. MAN HUSH YOUR STINKING MOUT!!! ALL YOU JACK HORSES IN HERE ARE IGNORANT AND NEGATIVE I NEVER SEEN PPL SO.. NOTHING CAN HAPPEN WITHOUGH YOU GUYS SAYING SOME BULL!! If you dont wanna fly on it so be it stick to LIAT

Like or Dislike: 00Nac VibesAugust 15, 2011

Bros, in case you did’nt notice we live in a democracy, which means we all will not agree at all times, but we all love Dominica, so rather than wish people take bullit in the head, be thankful that questions are being asked and debate takes place so that we arrive at whats good for all of us.
I for one do not object to progress, but not progress at any cost, because whatever progress we make there is a cost and are we prepared and will we be able to manage these costs.

I would really welcome this airline to dominica purely for no other reason then establishing some competition for Liat.
Ryan Air, by the way, gives their customers a lot of options and if you as a passenger do your homework you can get some very cheap flights. I do need to buy a drink for alot of money on the aircraft I have a bottle of water in my travelbag bought for 50 pence in a supermarket.
What concerns me is the age and type of aircraft RedJet is using. I must admit I propbably would not be flying with them. The MD-82 was never a reliable aircraft and in comparison Ryan Air flys a very young fleet of ultra modern, ultra reliable Boeing 737-800.

It is very rare for an airline to acquire new aircraft in its beginning phase unless success is guaranteed.

Let me be honest here. The Safest commercial aircraft to perform out of Melville hall on a regular basis fully loaded would be a Boeing 757-200. Why? lets just say that its extremely overpowered and has proven to be a bauss in short field takeoffs.

The Eastern Caribbean Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP) of the Trinidad and Tobago says runway 09 at Melville Hall is 8353 feet long. Maybe Rayburn should take a drive to the airport, measuring tape in hand and measure the runway himself. He might find that the runway is well short of that length.

Reading this article, it gave the impression that Emerald Express Charters was acting on behalf of Redjet. But there is really no point to mislead teh public because if the story comes out later that it was a ruse, it will just make him look foolish.

YOU ARE TO NEGATIVE.ARE YOU A DOMINICAN?LOOK AT THE POSITIVES COMING FROM THE PROSPECT OF REDJET AND OTHER AIRLINE COMING TO DOMINICA.STOP THE FOOLISH POLITICS GAMES.I was a strong supporter of the DLP.However, when the Government is doing something good. STOP THE NEGATIVE ATTITUDE!!!!!

“it gave the impression that Emerald Express Charters was acting on behalf of Redjet”

So what? I don’t care what it is called as long as we get to and from Dominica easier and quicker and jobs are created.

Stop dissing everything for your own political gain … many on here like that. Go shopping at the mall or whatever you get up to in your adopted country … you are obviously not living here in DA or you would welcome any improvement in DA’s access..

question: are you a pilot?? or employed at the ECAIP?? though the plane may have landed there. what grounds do you have to speculate on the readiness of Melville hall to accommodate this aircraft?? No disprespect or belittlement intended. im just asking….

@ 1979 – never claimed to be a pilot or an aeronautics expert a la Minister…. was just stating a fact…….read between the lines.

Like or Dislike: 00ECUAugust 15, 2011

@ 1979 – never claimed to be a pilot or an aeronautics expert…..was just stating a fact…..read between the lines.

Like or Dislike: 00DE CARIBBEAN CHANGE,August 16, 2011

AIR BUS 380 will land one day at Melville Hall to keep your jaws shut.

Like or Dislike: 13EvolvedAugust 15, 2011

@ECU – you should be thanking God that you made it in and out alive – you came in on a charter – charters are not held to the same requirements as scheduled airlines – know your facts before you take a blind leap of faith

if the US Airforce, FEDEX, UPS and others including direct Ross University charters out of Ft. Lauderdale can do it, why can’t others.
Every year we get the same “sky is falling”, “new airline coming” comment from govt, every year we sit back and get further frustrated.
If Govt could put half of those supposed airlines in action we’d be the best connected country in the region as opposed to the second poorest.

Folks, after my last post about 30 minutes ago, I did a little digging into this Emerald Express Charters. Here’s what I found.

Emerald Express Charters is owned by Jimmy A. Maldonado, as stated by Rayburn. The company is a charter company based in Fort Lauderdale and Naples FL, and is registered by the Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations in 2008. copy and paste these links to view the corporate records.

Instead of blowing smoke up my you know what, why don’t you respond to the post I have submitted to which you offered up this gem of a response. You prefer to cry foul when the facts are presented to you.

Mr Blackmoore has presented you with what appears to be a deception and I have returned to you with information on the individual he has presented to you as a legitimate businessman with intentions of opening up Dominica’s air access to the North American market; now that I have presented you the facts as recorded in official documents in Florida, who are you going to believe? Me? or your lying eyes?

Like or Dislike: 11JokerAugust 15, 2011

OMG, you mean a drunkard druggie is going to be fly the planes.

Laawd ave mercy, sound like some people are goint ot be in for a bumpy ride!!

There seems to be some obfuscation going on here – knowing Rayburn as well as I do, I would suspect that may be deliberate. Folks, this is what I have gleaned from this chest-thumping press release.

Emerald Express Charters, a charter company based in Florida who so happens to have REDjet as part of it’s roster, has sought from Dominican aviation authorities detailed information on Melville Hall Airport. The fact that this is a charter company, one can presumably believe that this company is/may be interested in operating charters in and out of Dominica. That is NOT the same as REDjet expressing interest in Dominica, as Rayburn seems to suggest.

The commingling of Emerald Express and REDjet appears to be a deliberate effort to whet the appetites of Dominicans longing for direct air service into major hubs in North America. That may very well be the case should the charter service get off the ground, but Dominicans must not allow themselves to be confused with that being the same regular commercial service by REDjet. As a matter of fact, until such time when we “hear it from the horse’s mouth”, i.e., REDjet officials themselves confirm that they’re in direct discussions with Dominican authorities regarding regularly scheduled commercial service, like the way they do now regarding Trinidad, Jamaica, and Guyana, we should all hold our collective applause. Yes, we should welcome increased charter service into the island, but Rayburn’s insinuation of REDjet having expressed interest is a likely a figment of his imagination OR a deliberate attempt to once again play Dominicans for fools.

I know am going to get quite a few negatives for this comment, and that’s fine, but I am a student of language – I pay extremely close attention to the words people use, when they use it, the context in which it has been used, and the possible intent – and if you read that release 10 times, no where does Rayburn say that they’re in discussions with REDjet – rather he volunteers that an air charter agent of REDjet has expressed interest in Dominica, and by going into detail about the airline and the equipment it operates, by mixing all that in the same pot, he surreptitiously leads the reader into believing a falsehood.

This folks, is malicious propaganda, calculated to fool Dominicans. I would hope that is not the case this time around.

Indeed!I suggested in an earlier entry (see below) that there appears to be a deliberate attempt to create a certain impression, which is Redjet is in talks with the Dominican authorities. ”Hooray, hooray! Redjet is coming to Dominica straight from America!” But this is not actual reality at this time. The Minister is seeking to create a perception which he hopes the Dominican people will accept as actual reality.

DNO and other media houses have a responsibility to protect their readers and sponsors from statements meant to deliberately mislead.

i feel a sense of relief whenever i read comments like yours. it indicates that there are people who are wise enough to not take everything at face value, who understand that nothing can trump reading between the lines or researching. i honor you my friend, you dispel the shroud which the fowler has attempted to place over our eyes… minister sir when will u grow up and act and talk like a man? we are educated adults now, we aren’t in kindergarten anymore unno???? stop setting us up for disappointment man… gosh

Sounds very good and encouraging but history has taught me not to swallow anything that Blackmoore and this administration until it eventually becomes a reality. So while very hopeful and excited, I will play the wait and see game.

I think there is a disconnect between the headline and the body of the article. My understanding from reading the article is that Emerald Express Charters is the one considering flying into Dominica not Redjet. The author, for certain reasons, is seeking to give the impression that Redjet is interested in Dominica, using the business relationship between the two companies

Read properly omg “It is with much delight therefore that the disclosure of the interest expressed by the USA agent for REDjet, Emerald Express Charters, Inc of Naples, Florida is made.” They are the USA agents for Redjet its the same people -.-.

You may well be right. As I have pointed out previously it is doubtful that we currently have enough payload for Redjet to operate even one MD-82 point-to-point/day on a scheduled basis (full load would require 300 pax). However, charters from the U.S.A. ,even if only weekly to start with would be good .The least this would do is to give our island more international exposure and we can build from there. Half an egg is better than an empty shell remember!

If Redjet or any other schedule/charter airline is interested in flying into Dominica, this should be welcomed. Afterall, much money and effort has been invested into the upgrading of the Melville Hall Airport.

According to the DNO article it appears that the McDonnell Douglas MD – 82 Jet Aircraft with a max pax of 167 is able to land and take off with ease. If this is the case then by all means every effort should be made to promote the airport to airline companies operating these and other types of aircrafts with similar specs.

Sadly, you are one of those gullible idiots who believe everything someone in authority says.

The md 82 cannot operate out of melville hall as a commercial aircraft. First of all the FAA would not approve of it nor would the ECCAA. Why, because passenger safety is their number one priority. Is your cranium too thick to get that through?